No. 17/16 Creighton used a big second half to pull away from Butler and take a 79-57 win Saturday afternoon at a sold-out Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
 
Baylor Scheierman led the Bluejays with 27 points and 10 rebounds.
 
With the win, Creighton improves to 19-7 (10-5 BIG EAST). Butler is now 16-10 (7-8 BIG EAST).
 
HOW IT TRANSPIRED:

• Butler came out of the gates strong as the Bulldogs took their largest lead of the game at 21-13 with 9:12 remaining in the first half.
• Creighton climbed all the way back to take brief 34-33 lead with just over a minute remaining in the first half before Butler went into the locker rooms with a 35-34 halftime edge.
• Butler's last lead of the game came at 37-36 with 18:57 remaining.
• Creighton outscored Butler, 45-22, in the second half.
• The 22-point margin at the final buzzer was the largest of the game.

 
OF NOTE:

• Ryan Kalkbrenner added 21 points for Creighton on 8-for-14 shooting.
• The Bluejays shot 52 percent from the field and utilized a 22-2 advantage in fast break points.
• After making only two of their 11 attempts from three-point range in the first half, Creighton connected on six of 14 in the second half.
• Jalen Thomas led the Bulldogs with 18 points, matching his season-high. He added a team-high five rebounds.
• Posh Alexander (13) and DJ Davis (12) also reached double figures for Butler.
• The Bulldogs were limited to 40-percent shooting for the second consecutive game.
• After making five of their first seven three-point attempts, Butler went just 1-for-15 the rest of the way.
• The teams combined for only 16 fouls in the contest. Both Creighton (the national leader) and Butler rank in the Top 10 nationally in fewest fouls committed this season.
• The teams split the regular season series after Butler won the first meeting, a 99-98 shootout in Omaha Feb. 2. It was the first BIG EAST game since 2011 with both teams scoring 95 or more in regulation.
• Saturday's contest concluded a five-game stretch for Butler that included four Top 25 opponents. Butler went 2-3 during that stretch.
• Entering the day, KenPom ranked Butler's schedule as the nation's 15th-toughest slate at this point in the season.

 
UP NEXT: The Bulldogs take to the road next week for contests at Villanova Tuesday and Seton Hall Saturday. Tuesday's tip at Villanova is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on FS1. Butler's next home game is Wednesday, Feb. 28 when the Bulldogs host St. John's.